What Pericles has devoted can be easily told from the praise "the first citizen of Athen". He is one of the most prominent populists and had led Athen through the first two year of Peloponnesian wars.
Pericles' mother was a scion from a powerful noble, and this helped both Pericles and his father's politic career. Pericles' father, Xanthippus, was once ostracised but returned to lead army and win victory. The wealthy background gave Pericles a chance to study. Unlike Washington or those who born to be leader, he was quiet and liked studies more than interaction with public in his childhood.
After Cimon's death, he gradually gained his power and became the statesman over 40 years. During "Ages of Pericles", He made some ambitious acheivements that benefited the city. On architectures, he rebuilt some shrines as well as temples for gods, whose original ones are destroyed in the wars. Also a giant statue of Athena Promachus, the Parthenon, and thAthens as the strongest party did not have to beat Sparta in military terms and "chose to foil the Spartan plan for victory"e Propylaea were done in his period. Above were not only the reconstructions in order to beautify the damaged city but numerous oppurtunities of works. On culture, he promoted art, literature, education and made the Athens play an important role preserving. Philosophy was another promotion, which was received from Anaxagoras, giving him the trait of calmness. Structures and education ensure the inner of the empire.
Pericles led Athens to an Empire, but not interested in expansion. His had good navy but refused to overexpand. Those caused both positive and negative reaction. Donald Kagan called the Periclean strategy "a form of wishful thinking that failed", which means that Pericles wasn't good at strategy at all. But Pericles' defensive grand strategy made other historian say that Athens as the strongest party did not have to beat Sparta in military terms and "chose to foil the Spartan plan for victory". One of them, Hans Delbrück, even called him one of the greatest statesmen and military leaders in history.
Epidemic spreaded fastly and took away some of his relatives. Athenians considered it as his fault because he let villagers move into city. Pericles' job was taken off. When Athenians thought of his devotions again, he died. Citizens had no chance to say thanks, instead, they changed the law to allow his son, who wasn't an Athenian to inherit his properties.
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
It's time for the newspapers to change
Today's media are paying too much attention on the unimportant stuff and negative news. They are busy distorting the facts to make their publications attracted. Paparazzi never stop offensing the celebrities' privacy but forget that we actually have no interest on it. It's time for them to make changes and for the news with "love" to warm us again.
If a killing happens in a small town, it might be repeated over years, but when it happens in a society, it might only be remembered for minutes. Since that, why the media don't carry us something more practical or close to our life? Take newspapers for example, there are at least three killing and rape news in a print. Sometimes stupid fail robberies are mentioned, too. I'm not saying that I ignore that knowing can help preventing, but to us, those are not special and commonly occured. Of course, we shouldn't neglect the dark side of the society.But can reporting the news that only worth a facial expression help improving the dark side? Isn't spreading the warm side of the world another way to help preventing the dark side grow?
I'm a loyal reader of newspapers. Reading newspapers after a tiring day is my dialy routine. But the content sometimes is too inappropriate to kids, like putting horrifying pictures on the headlines and discussing who had a baring accident today in the amusement section. We encourage kids to read newspapers by themselves, but could these content give positive influence to children? How many of the children can distinguish right from wrong, to do or not to do when they are young? These are what the editors and reporters should think about. Not only young people would be easily influenced but the adults are, too. A print of newspapers without some postive points of view or news would depress a person. Since that it's not easy for normal people to live in comfort, to make their publications be comfortably read with is also the publishers' lesson.
The new elected president of the America, Obama, led his supporters swear that yes, we can in his speech. However, in my view, we can't improve the society without the newspapers change first. So, to reach the goal of "yes, we can ", it's for the newspapers to change.
If a killing happens in a small town, it might be repeated over years, but when it happens in a society, it might only be remembered for minutes. Since that, why the media don't carry us something more practical or close to our life? Take newspapers for example, there are at least three killing and rape news in a print. Sometimes stupid fail robberies are mentioned, too. I'm not saying that I ignore that knowing can help preventing, but to us, those are not special and commonly occured. Of course, we shouldn't neglect the dark side of the society.But can reporting the news that only worth a facial expression help improving the dark side? Isn't spreading the warm side of the world another way to help preventing the dark side grow?
I'm a loyal reader of newspapers. Reading newspapers after a tiring day is my dialy routine. But the content sometimes is too inappropriate to kids, like putting horrifying pictures on the headlines and discussing who had a baring accident today in the amusement section. We encourage kids to read newspapers by themselves, but could these content give positive influence to children? How many of the children can distinguish right from wrong, to do or not to do when they are young? These are what the editors and reporters should think about. Not only young people would be easily influenced but the adults are, too. A print of newspapers without some postive points of view or news would depress a person. Since that it's not easy for normal people to live in comfort, to make their publications be comfortably read with is also the publishers' lesson.
The new elected president of the America, Obama, led his supporters swear that yes, we can in his speech. However, in my view, we can't improve the society without the newspapers change first. So, to reach the goal of "yes, we can ", it's for the newspapers to change.
Thursday, October 23, 2008
I am a lucky girl.
I have the nicest parents to take care of me and arrange the life besides studies. In my childhood, Almost every weekends they would take my brothers and I to go outside instead of being a couch potato. NCKU was really an ideal place. Bridges and trees make the college of literature more romantic just like the Tang poems had praised. Also, we often went mountain-climbing, too. Every time I climbed up for the bambo-shoots-soup vendor at the mountainside and went down for chicken soup at the bottem. And the bookstore was one of our favorite place, not only because of the air-conditioner but the mountain like bookshelves. My brothers are the best, too. They always let me pick what I want first and help me when I was stuck by the computer problems. To be honest, I am really poor at anythings connected to machines.
That's how I grew up. When other members dedicate themselves to the family, I just took them for granted. I didn't learn to take on more while aging. Still being a little princess, which never exist in a realistic world. I was quite arrogant and selfish when I was young. And those weren't the parents should afford.
The volcano would finally explode.
Once, when my parents were busy participating in my class trip, help preparing and carrying the the food. I did nothing but keeped asking how well they had done as well as saying "hurry up." At the morning before going, I sat at the sofa, watching parents busy setting stuffs. My Dad was quite angry about that. He yelled at me" Stop asking others to do things for you, think about what you can do to others." I was shook at that time. Tears came out immediately. During the trip, I am much more quite than before.
After, I didn't change lot. But I learned a lesson that I should do something active rather than waiting for help. Now, I would help when Father and Mother are busy. Though I still not a good daughter but better than before.
I have the nicest parents to take care of me and arrange the life besides studies. In my childhood, Almost every weekends they would take my brothers and I to go outside instead of being a couch potato. NCKU was really an ideal place. Bridges and trees make the college of literature more romantic just like the Tang poems had praised. Also, we often went mountain-climbing, too. Every time I climbed up for the bambo-shoots-soup vendor at the mountainside and went down for chicken soup at the bottem. And the bookstore was one of our favorite place, not only because of the air-conditioner but the mountain like bookshelves. My brothers are the best, too. They always let me pick what I want first and help me when I was stuck by the computer problems. To be honest, I am really poor at anythings connected to machines.
That's how I grew up. When other members dedicate themselves to the family, I just took them for granted. I didn't learn to take on more while aging. Still being a little princess, which never exist in a realistic world. I was quite arrogant and selfish when I was young. And those weren't the parents should afford.
The volcano would finally explode.
Once, when my parents were busy participating in my class trip, help preparing and carrying the the food. I did nothing but keeped asking how well they had done as well as saying "hurry up." At the morning before going, I sat at the sofa, watching parents busy setting stuffs. My Dad was quite angry about that. He yelled at me" Stop asking others to do things for you, think about what you can do to others." I was shook at that time. Tears came out immediately. During the trip, I am much more quite than before.
After, I didn't change lot. But I learned a lesson that I should do something active rather than waiting for help. Now, I would help when Father and Mother are busy. Though I still not a good daughter but better than before.
Wednesday, October 15, 2008
The Communication Right
Telephone tapping is officially, strictly controlled in many democratic countries to obey Article
12 in the Declaration of Human Rights " No one shall be subjected to arbitrary interference with his privacy, family, home or correspondence, nor to attacks upon his honour and reputation ."But still there's plenty of arguements about it.
Take Taiwan for example, in the past, government's despotism had allowed the agency to monitor people. The number of victims was increadibly high but unfortunately they were innocent in most cases. It made the progress of Taiwan slow down and the shortage of intellects. That's why lawmakers doubted on the Investigation Bureau's case of buying new devices to strengthen the phone tapping recently. Since that we are not a monocracy any more, why spend money on offensing people's privacy? On the other hand, the Bureau has the neccessary on attacking criminal and needs to renew their facilities. The most serious question is that this new device is mobile. With it, the agency could wire-tap on anyone only by parking a car nearby. It has already violated the law that cannot set a bug, video recorder, or other things which can monitor someone in private place. The Investigation Bureau needs to show the possibilities of criminal or destruction to the court to get the permission of wiretapping. But things could be change now. And it obviously offence our privacy.
Besides Taiwan, other countries are involved in it, too. However, some governments, like America, are still afraid of making promises not doing so. After reporters and officers accused CIA of telephone-tapping, they didn't even give a word on it. The prior chief of intelligence bureau in France had detected on president and his lover. Above showed our communication right is not safe anymore. How to make a good deal between people's privacy and the agency's work? The government needs to figure out.
12 in the Declaration of Human Rights " No one shall be subjected to arbitrary interference with his privacy, family, home or correspondence, nor to attacks upon his honour and reputation ."But still there's plenty of arguements about it.
Take Taiwan for example, in the past, government's despotism had allowed the agency to monitor people. The number of victims was increadibly high but unfortunately they were innocent in most cases. It made the progress of Taiwan slow down and the shortage of intellects. That's why lawmakers doubted on the Investigation Bureau's case of buying new devices to strengthen the phone tapping recently. Since that we are not a monocracy any more, why spend money on offensing people's privacy? On the other hand, the Bureau has the neccessary on attacking criminal and needs to renew their facilities. The most serious question is that this new device is mobile. With it, the agency could wire-tap on anyone only by parking a car nearby. It has already violated the law that cannot set a bug, video recorder, or other things which can monitor someone in private place. The Investigation Bureau needs to show the possibilities of criminal or destruction to the court to get the permission of wiretapping. But things could be change now. And it obviously offence our privacy.
Besides Taiwan, other countries are involved in it, too. However, some governments, like America, are still afraid of making promises not doing so. After reporters and officers accused CIA of telephone-tapping, they didn't even give a word on it. The prior chief of intelligence bureau in France had detected on president and his lover. Above showed our communication right is not safe anymore. How to make a good deal between people's privacy and the agency's work? The government needs to figure out.
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